José

I hesitate to recommend a DIY Packraft for unknown whitewater conditions… so much depends on the conditions and the paddlers’ skill. I assume the race organizers wouldn’t send you into unsafe conditions though, so it’s probably not a bad option. It would be a lot of work to make something you’re not passionate about though, so it might make more…[Read more]

I have tried many adhesives and do not recommend any of them, but two that other people have recommended (I have not used them because they’re not available where I live) are HH-66 and Stabond. They will stick to the fabric, but I don’t know if they’ll stick to a magnet. You may have better luck heat sealing a piece of fabric over the magnet to…[Read more]

In your situation I would rent packrafts for the event – much less stress and more time for training.

You can iron attachment points to the inside of the floor piece where it’s exposed between the ends of the tube pieces… that’s probably easiest.

It’s just double coated, and that’s where the extra weight comes from.

Hi @peteh

This is a common occurrence and nothing to worry about, due to some variations between the fabric pieces each time I cut them. You can trim the edge(s) to fit between the dots/slits, but don’t trim all the way along the seam – simply start trimming at the required width and then gradually make the trim narrower and narrower until it…[Read more]

Is it just me, or are these comments not nesting properly anymore? I’m replying to other comments, but I’m seeing my most recent comments at the top of the page.

Yeah, that’s definitely the area that is most likely to leak. I find that a cup or two of soapy water on the floor of the packraft works well there – you can hold the packraft up so the water pools over the floor-tube joint and squeeze the tubes while rotating it slowly… the bulk of the water will stay at the lowest point (obviously), but a…[Read more]

I’m sorry to hear you’re feeling discouraged! Are you sure it’s losing air, or could the pressure decrease be due to temperature changes? Can you elaborate on the situation and length of time we’re talking about?

Great, I’m glad that worked.

The ultralight fabric isn’t as strong as the heavier fabrics used in the other kits (obviously), but it won’t spontaneously start leaking in undamaged areas, so once the leaks are fixed that’ll be it unless it gets damaged.

You may have to expand your search with the soap and water to cover more area, not just along the seams (there could be small areas of the tube fabric TPU that were accidentally melted with the iron, for example). You might also check the valve to make sure it’s not leaking.

This iron has been sold.

For the “V4” boats with the hourglass shaped seat/seat back, I find that a single “Type 2” attachment point (on the Tie-Downs & Attachment Points page) works well at the rear of the cockpit floor. I tie a length of cord through the attachment point and around the neck of the seat.

Send me a message and I’ll help you out with this.

Thanks for posting this, Derek! We can all be glad that it ended well (more or less) and we can learn from the experience – but man, what a scare! I’m so glad you’re all okay.

Just yesterday I was thinking that maybe I should write a post or make a video about cold weather packrafting, and you’ve spurred me into action. For now, here’s a related…[Read more]

Yep!

Hi Robin,

The Skeena  and Telkwa models are so new that probably only a handful of people have finished building theirs, and I’m not sure how many of them have paddled the other packrafts you’re interested in, so it might be a while before you get a useful review. In the meantime, I started writing some notes about things to consider and what to…[Read more]

Hi Sean, I’ve found that the TPU to non-TPU welds aren’t very strong, and with all the rolling and unrolling a packraft goes through, it probably won’t hold forever, so I’d put some Seam Grip (or similar) around the edges so if it does separate there at least it won’t leak. The seam sealing glue isn’t great as a structural adhesive either, though.…[Read more]